This module introduces the concept of musical pitches. In the western art music tradition, musical notes or pitches are represented by letters of the alphabet. We use the letters A through G, and then begin with A again. In Python, we can use a list to represent these letters in order: If we want to […]
Tag: fundamentals
Key Signatures
This module explores the relationship between keys and key signatures. In musical notation, different musical keys are represented by patterns of sharps and flats on the staff called key signatures. The relationship between keys and key signatures is illustrated through a diagram called the circle of fifths: In the circle of fifths above, major keys […]
Skips and Steps and Style (and Chords)
This module builds on the previous Skips and Steps and Style module. In the previous module, we counted the skips and steps in Maple Leaf Rag, a piano composition by Scott Joplin from the late nineteenth century. Here’s a summary of our work so far (see the previous module for the code for the count_skipstep […]
Skips and Steps and Style
This module explores the prevalence of melodic skips and styles in different styles of music. It builds directly on the techniques covered in the Skips and Steps module. In the previous module, we established that melodic steps are significantly more prevalent than skips in the Kyrie of the Pope Marcellus Mass: While in the previous […]
Skips and Steps
The module introduces the concept of melodic skips and steps. This module uses the music21 library. Skips and steps refer to the distance, or interval, between two notes in a melody. Most melodies are made up of a combination of steps (short distances or small intervals) and skips (large distances or wide intervals). Many musical […]